KitchenNippon

Tsukemono, or pickled vegetables, have been a part of the diet here for over 2,000 years – since well before Japan was “Japan.” That staying power implies value and indeed there is value in terms of nutrition and flavor. Fermentation elevates the nutritional value of tsukemono beyond that of raw vegetables and produces flavors that are fundamental to Japanese food culture.

【Ingredients】（1 Servings）
・ Nukadoko set (Nukadoko mix 300g + Natural yeast paste 50g*1)……350g
・ Water (水 / Mizu)……250ml
・ Cucumber (きゅうり / Kyūri)……1
・ Carrots (にんじん / Ninjin)……1/2
・ Eggplant (なす / Nasu)……1/2

[How to Make]

① Add the nukadoko, water, and natural yeast paste to the plastic bag that came with the nukadoko set, and mix well.

② Cut off both ends of the cucumber. Skin the carrot and split it in half. Remove the stem portion of the eggplant and split it in half. Now make shallow cuts in the skin side of the two halves of the eggplant. Do not cut all the way through. The idea here is to aid the pickling process by creating breaks in the eggplant skin.

③ Place all of the vegetables into the plastic bag, so they are completely covered by the nukadoko mix. Remove the air from the bag and seal it.
④ The cucumber should be ready to eat in 1 day and the carrots and eggplant in 2 days. To eat your nukazuke, remove the desired piece from the bag, rinse the nukadoko paste off with water, and cut into bite-size pieces.

Recipe Developed by: Machiko Tateno